Home- ASTRONOMYSpaceX breaks up US Spy Satellite launch monopoly — on a classified...

SpaceX breaks up US Spy Satellite launch monopoly — on a classified mission

April 29, 2017

Breaking a 10-year monopoly by United Launch Alliance (ULA), SpaceX will launch a satellite into orbit on a classified mission tomorrow morning (April 30) from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and the company will attempt to land the Falcon 9 rocket’s first stage again after use.

After the launch, SpaceX’s webcast is expected to follow the landing of the rocket’s first stage on a nearby designated landing pad about 8 minutes after launch, where it would become the fourth to land successfully at that location.

Based on the agency’s past requests for similar missions, public announcements of the classified satellite may stop a few minutes after launch.

ULA has launched every dedicated U.S. military and national security satellite for the past 10 years; SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket was certified to launch military satellites in 2015, giving it the ability to bid on military launches.

SpaceX and NRO have not revealed the contents of the NROL-76 mission or the precise launch time within the window.